Main menu

Tag Archives: wildfires

Post navigation

…”Province says 2017 is BC’s worst wildfire season on record”…”12 things learned by working as a butler at the Plaza Hotel”…”I don’t mean to ruin your holiday, but Europe hates tourists–and with good reason”….

SOMETHING ABOUT…“1) one VIP list you don’t want to be on–the “SA”..those requiring special assistance (the complainers); 2) bath time can be awkward; 3) hotel guests are predictable; 4) except when they’re totally unpredictable 5) sex, drugs & come again?; 6) mind the pillowcases (guests bring their own; don’t let them disappear) 7) Christmastime, not so merry; 8) the customer is not always right; 9) the easiest way to get banned (zero tolerance of guests who mistreat staff); 10) afternoon tea leftovers don’t go to waste (they go to the staff canteen at 5:30pm); 11) a good tip can make it worthwhile; 12) when to call it a night”

One can only imagine ‘reading-between-the-lines’…..all in day’s work!

Say what????!!!!….

SOMETHING ABOUT…“Travel opens our eyes to the world – but it also means closing them. We ignore the hordes of people like us, all of whom want authentic tapas and a photo for Instagram.”

The opinion piece continues “Ethically, we know there are issues with tourism, but we ignore them because we tell ourselves that seeing the world will make us appreciate it more. But what happens when locals feel completely taken over by tourists? There is no denying the innate imperialism of much tourism. We tread heavily through the homes of others as if we owned them. No wonder they wish we weren’t here.”

A wee interlude not meant to be ‘heavy’, that sings about us all being pilgrims on the journey of life and shares some sentiments about humanity!

SOMETHING ABOUT…..The Gulf Islands routes and changes in equipment and schedules and vacationing travellers and locals experiencing chaos not being able to get reservations and ships sailing half-full, to leave more room for standby drivers.

SOMETHING ABOUT….“Fire danger ratings rising from high to extreme as scorching temperatures and warm smoky winds further dry out local forests.”

Air quality warnings & fire risk shriek—-caution and take care folks!

SOMETHING ABOUT…“Everyone seems to have a story of being struck on a sidewalk by a cellphone walker, so engrossed in their electronics that they lose track of the real world.”

It seems distracted walker regulations may soon be coming to a community near you, following examples taken from places like Honolulu, Seoul, Toronto and beyond!

….”37,000 people now evacuated from their homes across British Columbia”….”World stock markets hit records highs as Chinese GDP beats forecasts”…

Patience, stress, worry, & uncertainty are some of the buzz words of the day for many displaced British Columbians as wildfires rage out of control threatening too many communities and requiring more and more evacuation orders in the central area of the province.

Cheers to all the offers of support from far and wide for those affected and those assisting the first responders and firefighters who are working unceasingly as hot, dry, conditions persist across the province….

SOMETHING ABOUT….”although the Chinese economy was holding up better than expected in the first half of the year & will likely continue to do so for a short while longer, a slowdown is likely inevitable.”

My green thumb came only as a result of the mistakes I made while learning to see things from the plant’s point of view. ~H. Fred Dale (Thanks, Anne)

Gardening is cheaper than therapy and you get tomatoes. ~Author Unknown

Science, or para-science, tells us that geraniums bloom better if they are spoken to. But a kind word every now and then is really quite enough. Too much attention, like too much feeding, and weeding and hoeing, inhibits and embarrasses them. ~Victoria Glendinning

Weather means more when you have a garden. There’s nothing like listening to a shower and thinking how it is soaking in around your green beans. ~Marcelene Cox

Cheers to a fine summer Monday that sings—how green is the ‘garden’ that’s my day!

…”Wildfires will always happen, but Canadians forgetting safety lessons they teach us”…”Here’s how you can start living the millennial dream of being your own boss”…”Slice of heaven: could this be the best pizza in the world?”…

SOMETHING ABOUT…“what we think is (an) extreme (fire event) today will be the new normal in 20 or 30 years.”

Caution. Knowledge. Due care and attention, folks!

SOMETHING ABOUT…”ditching the day job, and striking out on your own venture.”

“Being happy to take a pay cut for better work-life balance.”

Ultimately 66% of millennials surveyed want to work for themselves, apparently.

“Start with a side-hustle. Build a financial cushion. Seek out spousal/entrepreneurial support & mentoring.”

SOMETHING ABOUT…”a pizzeria in a village near Naples, where chef Franco Pepe tops his handmade dough with local artisanal ingredients.”

…”Nearly 90% of Fort McMurray still intact; 2,400 structures lost”…”Debate over O Canada lyrics is about language, not gender equality”…”‘Rainbows’ in the forecast”…

The devastation from wildfires at Alberta’s Fort McMurray is horrendous but today’s headline could have described something that might have been much worse.

May all who have been uprooted find their way to ‘normalcy‘ with new ways and new beginnings filled with hope & renewed plans to prosper.

The debate centers around “in all thy sons” & the intended meaning being “all of us”, albeit not using the most inclusive language with the sons reference.
One could quip ‘sunny ways’ & ‘sonny days’ sings–make the change and get on with it with our Canada, glorious and free!

For me ‘all thy sons’ is just another historical type reference to humankind that in earlier days was referred to as strong>mankind’, just like salutations were all too often ‘Dear Sirs’, but the intention was and always was intended to refer ‘to all’.

So be it! Let our language be life giving rather than life sapping!

I’ve lived long enough to know that ‘in the storms of life‘ we can draw comfort from the fact that ‘the sun’ ALWAYS comes after ‘rain’.

Whatever the challenges might be for you & those you love this May Tuesday, know there are ‘rainbows’ in the forecast!

This 125th day of the year “marks the approximate midpoint of spring in the Northern Hemisphere and of autumn in the Southern Hemisphere!”

Today’s a national holiday in Mexico to commemorate the ‘Battle of Puebla’.

A day to celebrate Mexican cuisine, culture and music!

Will you enjoy a margarita or fajita?!?!

…”Fort McMurray exodus widens as fires rage: A lot of people are working ‘to get you out'”…”‘We wanted to run, but figured it was a bad idea’: Cougar charges at screaming hikers on B.C. bike trail”…”

A state of emergency continues in Alberta, as multiple WILDFIRES scorch widening areas of the province. Mandatory evacuations are displacing many residents and forcing many oil sands companies to shutter facilities.

Stay safe folks!

Be it wildfires or WILDLIFE, the keyword of the day seems to be caution!

Take care!

Whatever the events of your Thursday might be, may WISDOM abound!

Be wise in it!

Song of Wisdom

I came forth from the mouth of the Most High,
and covered the earth as a mist.
I dwelt in high places,
and my throne is in a pillar of cloud.
Alone I compassed the circuit of heaven
and walked the depths of the abyss.
In the waves of the sea and in all the earth,
and over every people and nation I got a possession.
With all these I sought rest.
And I took root in a people that was glorified,
in the portion of the Lord’s own inheritance.
I was exalted like a cedar in Libanus,
and as a cypress on the mountains of Hermon.
I was exalted like a palm tree on the sea shore,
and as a fair olive tree in the plain.
And my branches are branches of glory and grace,
and my flowers are the fruit of glory and riches.
Come unto me, ye that are desirous of me,
and ye be filled with my fruits.
For my thoughts are filled from the sea,
and my counsels from the great deep.
And I came out as a stream from a river
I said, I will water my garden
and will water abundantly my garden-beds.
And lo, my stream became a river,
and my river became a sea.

Soaring temperatures and tinder-dry forest are fueling out-of-control wildfires in Alberta’s
Fort McMurray.
The rapidity of conditions changing was the most alarming to the professional firefighters & residents alike.
May all be safe!

SOMETHING ABOUT…”where some see openness, authenticity and vision, others detect only talk, a well-oiled PR machine and a new face on business as usual.”

SOMETHING ABOUT…”Smartphone-maker loses appeal over use of ‘iphone’ branding on leather goods in China allowing handbags, phone cases and wallets to continue to be sold.”

Some might quip certain headlines of today quip— “Knock it off!”

May the forces be with you for a safe and secure, genuinely respectful Wednesday!

…”Alberta on track to have worst air quality in Canada, provincial environment minister says”…”There’s a 55% chance China will drag the world into global recession, British economist warns”…”Will the smoke from the Okanagan wildfires affect the flavour of the region’s grapes?”…

Apparently, it will be all about “sliding demand from emerging markets, especially China.”
Other emerging markets in Brazil, South Africa, & Russia are already in trouble they say, with lacklustre performance. “Commodity prices, trade and inflation remain sluggish as corporate earnings are slowing.”

Good to know that the answer is “probably not.” “Smoke has mainly stayed clear of the vines. The flames that came close to vineyards in the South Okanagan in August were met with mercifully light winds. This permitted smoke to rise up rather than to move across the land and settle on grapes.”

Cheers to a fine 2015 harvest & flavourful Okanagan wines at their finest!

Cyclists are reporting ‘it’s like being in Beijing!’ Air quality advisory warning level: 11. Yikes!

Greece!!!

Something about “go there & eat olive oil and watch football.”

Well, as the sun shines around the world and here’s hoping the smoke will soon clear across Canada’s British Columbia, Alberta & Saskatchewan, the 75th annual Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) International conference winds up at Vancouver’s downtown convention centre.

Delegates are expanding their networks “with 2,000+ peers from more than 100 countries, deepening their knowledge of internal audit, and experiencing the sights and multicultural offerings of British Columbia as they explore “Mountains of Change… Oceans of opportunities.”

Cheers to a wild & wacky Wednesday that smiles— odd it !!!

How come there’s only one Monopolies Commission? ~Nigel Rees

An expert is a man who tells you a simple thing in a confused way in such a fashion as to make you think the confusion is your own fault. ~William Castle

A wise saying is something you keep picking up off the floor in front of your fridge. ~Robert Brault

“Seven BC Jobs That Redefine What Hard Work Really Is”…”Wildfires dying down in BC thanks to cool weather & rainfall”…”Loneliness: a silent plague that is hurting young people the most”…

Talk about “workforce” & energy and I think anyone who takes their job seriously, will say that no matter what the job, every one has its challenges.
Stress, professional joys, growth & rewards and at the same time recurring disappointments in a variety of ways but all hopefully outweighed, for the most part, by a sense of enjoyment in what one’s gainfully doing and growing as a person in collegiality with others….

Apparently, difficulty and hard work redefined can be seen most predominantly with its accompanying mental, physical, and emotional challenges in the labours of paramedics, deep sea divers, tree fallers, pest controllers, trauma nurses, camp cooks, and diamond drillers in our fine province of British Columbia!…

No doubt you can think of a few other occupations where you find yourself too!….

May you always think your job grand & may it always have you howling! …. : )

It’s good news to hear that some of those displaced from their homes by wildfires raging around British Columbia have been able to return, although still cautioned to be ready to
evacuate again, if necessary.

Cheers to cooler weather and rainfall continuing to quell the flames and assist the many firefighters deployed to contain some very serious fire risks!…

Interesting to note that a recent research study reveals loneliness is in fact a greater concern among young people than the elderly.

“Social media and the internet can be both a boon and a problem”, say the researchers, “beneficial when they allow contact with distant loved ones, but not when they replace face-to-face contact”.

Cheers to well-being & interactions and feelings–isolation-free!…

Man loves company even if it is only that of a small burning candle. ~Georg Christoph Lichtenberg

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. ~Henry David Thoreau, 1854

We live in a very tense society. We are pulled apart… and we all need to learn how to pull ourselves together…. I think that at least part of the answer lies in solitude. ~Helen Hayes

The great omission in American life is solitude; not loneliness, for this is an alienation that thrives most in the midst of crowds, but that zone of time and space, free from the outside pressures, which is the incubator of the spirit. ~Marya Mannes

No man should go through life without once experiencing healthy, even bored solitude in the wilderness, finding himself depending solely on himself and thereby learning his true and hidden strength. ~Jack Kerouac

We visit others as a matter of social obligation. How long has it been since we have visited with ourselves? ~Morris Adler

Everyone’s alone — or so it seems to me.
They make noises, and think they are talking to each other;
They make faces, and think they understand each other.
And I’m sure they don’t. Is that a delusion?
T. S. ELIOT, The Cocktail Party

We are lonesome animals. We spend all our life trying to be less lonesome. One of our ancient methods is to tell a story begging the listener to say — and to feel — “Yes, that’s the way it is, or at least that’s the way I feel it. You’re not as alone as you thought.”
JOHN STEINBECK, “In Awe of Words”

Confronted by too much emptiness … the brain invents. Loneliness creates company as thirst creates water. How many sailors have been wrecked in pursuit of islands that were merely a shimmering?
MARGARET ATWOOD, The Year of the Flood